For this collection of folk tales Rosalind Kerven has chosen traditional stories from twelve different North American Indian peoples. She has grouped her selection of stories around the recurrent themes of the sun, moon and stars; fantastical journeys; and two popular cultural heroes, Spider Woman, a benevolent sorceress, and Coyote the trickster. Her retellings beautifully convey the mystical atmosphere of the original stories and bring out the Native American's affinity with and respect for the natural world. A factual introduction explains the traditional role of story telling and gives background to past and present North American culture.